Combination of envelope and letter-sheet



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHAELEs ECWLAND, 0E CLINTON, ILLINOIS.

COMBINATION OF ENVELOPE AND LETTER-SHEET.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 51,623, dated December 19, 1865.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES ROWLAND, of Clinton, in the county of De Witt and State of Illinois, have invented a new and Improved Combined Envelope and Letter-Sheet 5 and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable those skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specilication, in which- Figure l is an external view of my invention in a folded state; Fig. 2, an open or unfolded view of the same, the sheet side orv inner surface being shown; Fig. 3, a section of Fig. 2, taken in the line a:

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

/This invention relates to a new and improved combination of an envelope and letter-sheet which, it is believed, possesses advantages over the various plans hitherto devised for effecting the same end.

The invention consists in applying flaps to the letter-sheet in such a Ina-nner that when the sheet is folded with a simple fold the flaps may be turned over the folded sheet and gummed, so as to securely conceal the face side of the letter-sheet and render it impossible to see its contents, the invention at the same time admitting of the flaps being rudely torn open without at all injuring the letter-sheet, and the letter sheet, when folded and the flaps gum med over it, having the appearance of an ordinary detached envelope with a letter-sheet within it.

A represents the letter-sheet,which may be of any desired dimensions, and of the form of one leaf of an ordinary letter or note sheet. This sheet is provided with a ap, B, at each side of it, said flaps having concave sides a a, and gradually increasing in width from their outer to their inner sides, as shown clearly in Fig. 2. These aps B B are at the center of the sides of the sheet A, extending from the centralpart, b, over which the upper and lower parts, c c, of the sheet are folded, d d, Fig. 2,

representing the creases form by the folds.

On the back of the letter-sheet A there are pasted or gummed two plates, C C, said flaps extending from creases d d to within a short distance of the ends of the sheet A, and having rounded edges, as shown by the dotted lines in Figs.l and 2, the curvature extending from one side of the sheet to the other.

rlhe sheet A has the two folds d d made at equal distances from its ends, the central part, b, being a trifle wider than the parts c c, and when the parts c c are folded over the central part, b, the aps B B are folded over on c c and the flaps C C folded over on B B, the former being gummed or pasted together.

By this arrangement the sheet,when folded and the flaps turned over it and pasted or gummed, will have the appearance of an ordinary detached envelope with a letter-sheet inclosed. No gaps or openings are left, nor can any he made by fair means, so as to render-Visible the contents of the letter, and the flaps may be torn open or apart without the least danger of injuring or tearing the letter-sheet.

I do not claim, broadly, a combined envelope and sheet, for they. have been previously devised, but arranged differently from any plan herein set forth; but

I do claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- A combined envelope and letter-sheet formed CHARLES ROWLAND.

Witnesses:

WM. LOWEY, J. T. CLARK. 

